restoring a monument
TRANSCRIPT
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J... . , I... .1. %:,.,.
Restoring a jmonument
The ASI is restoring the Prohm
Buddhist temple complex In
Cambodia, which attracts hundreds
of tourists every day.
BY T.S. SUB RAMAN IAN RECENTLY IN SI EM REAP
Gigantic silk-cotton trees have taken
over the entire complex, splitting the
blocks of stones and uprooting the
galleries, causeways, shrines, and
so on. The corbelled roofs havecaved in and the gopuras look
pathetic with the stones dislodged.WH EN D.S. Sood stepped into the "Hall of j
Dancers" at Prohm, the Buddhist monastic tern- j
pie complex in Siem Reap province of Cambodia, in j
December 2004 he shuddered at the ruins he saw
before him. Sood, a Deputy Superintending Archae-
ological Engineer with the Archaeological Survey of
India (ASI), is a veteran of several challenging resto-ration projects in Sanchi, Khajuraho, Bhopal, Gwa-
lior and Mandu in India, and at Angkor Wat in j
Cambodia itself. But the devastation that he saw in j
the Hall of Dancers and other structures in
Prohm complex was too much for him.
The Prohm complex was built by the Khmer
king Jayavarman VII circa 1181. Originally called
"Rajavihara" (the royal temple), it comprised a sanc-
tum sanctorum and 39 other shrines topped with
vimanas (towers), galleries, causeways and entrance
gategopuras, among other structures. The king ded-
icated the complex to his mother, Rajachudamani.
CREEPERS ENTWINE THE silk-cotton tree to
form a trellis over a shrine at Proh m.
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(CLOCKWISE
FROM TOP, left)
The causeway in
the P rohm
complex, before,
during and after
its restoration.
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Siem Reap is the capital city of Siem Reap
province in north-western Cambodia, and is
the gateway to the Angkor region, which
served as the seat of the Khme r empir e.
The sanctum had an image of Pragnya
Paramita, the goddess of wisdom, and
it was installed in 1186 CE. The image
was modelled on the king's mother.
Two shrines in the third enclosure
were dedicated to Jayavarman VII's
guru and his brother. The Hall of
Dancers was Prohm's centrepiece,
with 48 pillars supporting its corbelled
roof. The pillars had exquisite carvings
of dancing apsaras, elephants, men as-
tride horses, floral motifs, and so on.
Its walls had niches with friezes of
Bodhisatvas and mythical animals.
"The Hall of Dancers was in total
ruins. We had no access to it," Sood
said, recalling his first foray into it.
"The ceiling had completely collapsed
and it was lying in pieces on the floor.
Most of the pillars were broken in two
or three pieces. The porches had caved
in," he added. There was chaos, with
architectural members, lintel beams
and broken pillars lying all around.
The entire structure was clogged withwater and there was a few feet of silt.
What was benumbing was that three
monstrously tall silk-cotton trees [Cei-
ba pentandra] had grown inside the
hall, dislodging its sandstone blocks,
driving cracks in the wall and heaving
up thefloor."The vegetation had pene-
trated the foundation and it was not
safe for tourists to go inside," he said,
as he displayed pictures of the ruins
taken in 2004.
Cut to June 24, 2012. "This is our
RESTORATION WORK GOING on at
the Hal l of Dance rs.
THAILAND LAOS
I VIETNAM^
C A M B O D h
VPhnom Penh
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THE HALL OF DANCERS before restoration work began. The ASI te am found
that the ceiling had completely collapsed, most of the pillars were broken in
two or three pieces and the porches had caved in.
plex. There were stunning sights sandstone blocks. In fact, 25 silk-cot-
everywhere. A -metre-tall silk-cot- ton trees, each more than 200 years
ton tree soared into the sky with its old and 30-40 metres tall, have taken
massive roots gripping avimana. The over the entire complex, splitting the
roots had formed a trellis over the blocks of stones and uprooting the gal-
carvings above the shrine 's doorway, leries, causeways, shrines, pillars, lin-
Thevimana was in a precarious posi- tel beams, and many other structures,
tion, with the tree having dislodged its The corbelled roofs have caved in and
work yard," Sood said softly and
showed a group of visiting Indians
how two broken pieces of a sandstone
pillar with elegant carvings had been
riveted together using steel pins by the
ASI team led by him. The visiting Indi-an team was led by T. Satyamurthy,
former Superintending Archaeologist,
ASI. The air buzzed with the noise of
small drilling machines boring holes
into broken sandstone blocks. Some
men were assiduously joining them to-
gether. The pillars were from the Hall
of Dancers. They bore numbers: obvi-
ously Sood and his team had docu-
mented them, knowing where they
would fit in. "If some pillars or archi-
tectural members are missing, we getthe sandstone blocks from the original
quarry in the Kulen mountains, about
35 km from here. In our restoration
and conservationefforts,we have used
only the original stones, and new
stones only occasionally when it was
totally necessary," said . . Ganju, Se-
nior Conservation Assistant, ASI.
"We are a team of five from the
ASI," said Sood.
Sood, Ganju, and E.P. Biswas and
H. Raghavendra, both senior draft-
smen of the ASI, led us inside the com-
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the entrance gategopuras look pathe t- tectural members using threaded steel
ic with the stone blocks dislodged from pins, epoxy and polymer is in progress,
their places. The transformation tha t the complex
Signs of vandalism are everywhere, has been undergoing is unbelievable.
Friezes of Bodhisatvas have been Sood said: "Documents were prepared
hacked away. Again, what would have to find out where the stones belonged
been a series of bas-reliefs of beautiful because entire structures had col-
Bodhisatvas on the wall of the gallery lapsed."
between the third and fourth enclo- The ASI documented every stone
sures have been chopped off. member layer by layer and grid by
Apar t from trees and vandalism, grid; measured every sandstone block
frequent shifting of the capital, and for its length, height and width; and
invasions and internalstrifeplayed ha- recorded their quality and orientation,
voc with Prohm, Bayon, Bantea The entire hall was photographed bit
Srei, Beng Mealea, Prasa t Kravan and by bit. Then the dismantling of the
other temple complexes in the prov- floor was done, the soil was treated
ince. "When the capital was shifted appropriately and sandstone blocks offrom Siem Reap, this area was neglect- the floor and the plinth were reset. The
ed and Prohm fell into ruins. Many original broken stones of the floors,
trees began to grow on its structures columns and roof were repaired and
causing their collapse. That is why joined with appropriate material and
Prohm is popularly called Tree Tem- threaded with steel pins. It was en-
ple," Ganju said. sured tha t all architectural members
Right now, restora tion is under achieved the desired structural
way in the hall. A tower crane is being strength before they were reassem-
used to lift and put aside the fallen bled.
architectural members afte r they are Raghavendra and Biswas assidu-
numbered and measured in situ. The ously prepared documentation draw-
lateri te apron along the plinth has al- ings of the plan, section and elevationready been exposed and strengthened, of the hall. "Then we prepared conser-
The join ing of broken pillars or archi- vation drawings wherein we num -
A SHRINE IN the firm "grip" of a
silk-cotton tree.
bered each and every stone before the
wall or roof was dismantled. All the
scattered stones were numbered,"
Raghavendra said.
"We started our restoration work
by the end of 2010. Our aim is to finish
it by 2014," Sood said. "The restoration
of the Hall of Dancers was the most
challenging task not only because of itsdilapidated state but because of the
gigantic trees that were posing a threat
to the structure . Besides, UNESCO de-
creed that the trees should not be cut
because it wants visitors to see the con-
tra-distinction between the right side
of the hall where the ASI would restore
the roof and the left side where the
trees would remain.
Despite its ruined state, Prohm
is the most visited temple complex in
Siem Reap. It attracts hundreds of
j tourists every day from all over the
world. Cameras click away endlessly as
tourists pose for pictures. When theTHE ENTRANCE GOPURA, before (facing page) and after restoration.
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branches of the trees sway, the struc- the inner core made of laterite blocks, skrit in Khmer script in the complex,
tures also move, making the tourists It was built in "Sarvato Bhadra" style, which conveys t hat a township of
gasp in astonishment. "Every day, that is, it had access from the four 12,460 people flourished between the
from 9 a.m. there are long queues of directions. Galleries and entrances four th and fifth enclosures. The com-
tourists to look at the trees growing had corbelled, vaulted roof. As Mi- plex had 19 Buddhist high priests. The
over thevimanas," Sood said. chael Freeman and Claude Jacques, in inscript ion says it had 500 kilograms
Prohm is concentric in plan. It their well-researched book entitled each of gold and silver, diamonds
has five rectangular enclosures and Ancient Angkor, explain, "...the device weighing 35 kg, and 4 ,600 pearls,
four entrances, one in each direction, known as corbelling was sufficient and When the ASI was restoring the Hall of
It is 1,150 m long and 663 m wide. The simple to execute with no need for Dancers in March this year, it found a
entire complex, including the com- scaffolding. Each higher stone course beau tiful golden crown under thepoundwalls,the entrancegopuras, the projects a little over the one below, floor. Sood argues that the Hall of
39 shrines, galleries, causeways, andso until the sides finally meet at the top." Dancers itself "was not a hall for danc-
on, was built of sandstone blocks, with There is a long inscription in San- ers but a place where the Buddhist
THE RUINED STATE of the gallery located between the third and fourth
enclosures before its restoration; (below) scaffolds erected for its
restoration; and (right) after the restoration was completed in 2010.
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monks sat in meditation". Prohm unique coexistence of trees and heri- ed the structures. The disadvantage is
suffered desecration a t the hands of tage". Prohm was "different fro m tha t if the single core is removed, then
Jayavarman VIII, who was a Hindu, the monumen ts in India because it has the entire structure will collapse."
During his reign, the carvings and a single core", he said. The complex UNESCO declared Angkor a
sculptures of the Buddha, Avalokitis- was buil t by piling stone blocks one World Heri tage Site in December
vara and others in the Buddhist pan- upon the other. No mor tar or binding 1992, and Angkor Wat, Prohm,
theon were systematically hacked or mater ial was used to cement them. So Prea Khan, Bayon, Beng Mealea and
destroyed in Prohm, Bayon, Prea when the trees grew over the structur- other complexes were recognised as
Khan, Bateay Kdei and other complex- es, the roots could not grow deep into World Heritage Monumen ts. After an
es. the core of the structures because there inter-governmental conference in To-
Satyamurthy, who has restored was no masonry inside. Satyamurthy kyo in 1993, an Interna tional Coor-scores of ruined monuments in India, said: "The trees look like a mot her em- dinating Commit tee (ICC) was
described t he complex as "an out- bracing her child. The advantage is established to oversee the restoration
standing mon ume nt where there is tha t they have not completely uproot- work at Angkor. The committee meets
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several times a year in plenary and
technical sessions. On their part, the
Khmers themselves have established a
body, APSARA (Authority for the Pro-
tection of the Sites and Administrat ion
of the Region of Angkor).
The Government of India offered
to restore and conserve the Prohm
complex with its own funds. That is
how the ASI stepped into Prohm in
December 2004. A board in the com-
plex says,"Apartnership project of the
Archaeological Survey of India with
APSARA National Authority in coop-
eration with UNESCO...."
Sood said: 'When we first came
here, we analysed the temple, its struc-
ture and so on, and gave a report to theASI. More than 65 per cent of the com-
plex had collapsed. We studied the
monuments [structures], their beha-
viour, tendency, stability, how they
were built, the materials used in their
construction, why the structures col-
lapsed, what kind of conservation was
needed, the quantum of restoration
needed, etc. Generally, we preserve the
monuments and give support to the
structures. If some restoration is re-
quired, we do it. We want to conserveand restore. We do not want to add any
thing new."
After analysing the entire monu-
DETAILS OF A torana in the Prohm complex.
ment, the ASI decided that it would locations, where trees had grown on
restore five structures - the third en- the roof of the structures, were ident i-
closure gallery on the eastern side of fied for a support system. Nearly three
the south wing; the causeway connect- years of extensive documentat ion,
ing the third and four th enclosures on studies and analysis gave the ASI team
the west; par t of the Hall of Dancers; a tremendous insight into how "to re-the entrancegopura of the four th en- spect, conserve, and maintain the au-
closure on the western side; and the thent icity and integrity of the temple
entrance gategopura of the fifth enclo- complex".
sure on the west. Besides, nine critical The restoration work proper began
FROM LEF T, D. s. Sood, the ASI te am leade r; . . Ganju, senior conservation
assistant; and H. Raghavendra and E.P. Biswas, both senior draftsman, at
the Prohm complex.
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in 2007, with about 200 Cambodian
workers, including 20 skilled workers,
assisting the ASI team. Since the resto-
ration and conservation work is multi-
disciplinary in nature, the ASI took the
help of the Forest Research Institute
(FRI), Dehradun; Water and Power
Consultancy Service Limited (WAP-
COS), New Delhi; and the Indian In-
stitute of Technology Madras. The FRI
helped in conserving and maintaining
the trees.
WAPCOS did hydrological, drain-
age and ground-penetrating radar